New mothers face emotional shifts after childbirth: Know the signs

Pregnancy and childbirth bring massive changes to a mother's body and mind, leaving many women dealing with sadness, anxiety, or tearfulness in the weeks that follow. Dr Nidhi Sharma Chauhan, a consultant gynaecologist at Saifee Hospital in Mumbai, explains how to know if these feelings are normal baby blues or something more serious. While the common baby blues fade away on their own after a short time, postpartum depression lasts longer and gets worse. New mothers dealing with baby blues might feel sad, helpless, or anxious, and they may cry often. These feelings happen because the body is changing, the mother is tired, and caring for a baby is hard work. However, postpartum depression makes daily tasks like eating and staying clean very difficult, on top of looking after the child. Dr Chauhan points out that family and friends often focus entirely on the baby, but they need to check in on the mother as well to see if she is struggling. Postpartum depression is treatable with therapy, and Dr Chauhan stresses that it is not the mother's fault, so she should never feel ashamed or embarrassed about it.